3 Common Airchair Mistakes (Almost) All Beginner Bboys and Bgirls Make

If you didn’t know, that was the original name of the move we now call the airchair.

And adding on to even more fun facts about the airchair, it was a move that I would consider a recent invention (it was only invented in 1999/2000 by PoeOne.)

Watch him discuss the history here:

Ever since PoeOne invented the airchair, it has become a popular move.

In fact, it has become a move almost every bboy or bgirl desires to master.

Why? I have no idea.

But it is indeed a technically impressive move. One that looks visually impressive, technically difficult and requires you to have a certain amount of balance and strength.

One that strikes all the boxes of impressing someone of course.

Anyway, even though it is a popular move, it is a hard one to master.

It seems easy to emulate and imitate when you see it for the first time, but as you try it, you’ll understand how difficult it is.

And many bboys get it wrong.

The problem is — they don’t know where they go wrong. Or how they can begin correcting it.

If that is you?

No problem.

This is the precise issue we’ll be tackling today.

3 Common Airchair Mistakes Most Beginner Bboys and Bgirls Make

We are going to talk about airchairs and the common mistakes that beginners do when they attempt to learn the freeze.

Click ‘play’ on the video to learn more:

We are going to focus on 3 main areas:

Your Legs

Your Core

Your Stabbing Arm

Airchair Mistake #1: Mis-Kicking Your Legs

Most beginners learn airchair through hope.

What I mean is that:

They like to kick both their legs and jump up in the air, hoping to somehow miraculously land in an airchair.

This is what a negative example looks like:

Here’s my personal opinion:

I feel that if you kick your legs one by one instead, it’ll be so much easier to get into an airchair.

This is what I mean. From here (your stab position),

Kick up your legs one by one, starting with your left leg first and then your right (do the opposite if you’re a left stabber.)

So what I like to do is I like to start by kicking my non-master leg, followed by my master leg. This is what it looks like:

So if you’re making this mistake… How can you correct it?

How can you practice to get rid of this mistake?

Here’s what you can do:

Step 1: Start off in a chair freeze.

Step 2: Raise your non-master leg, and then your master leg.

Step 3: Do this for 10 reps, 3 sets total.

If you’re great at this and want something more advanced, then do the same exercise, but with your head off the ground.

Get used to activating your muscles individually. This will help you in getting your airchairs much much faster.

Airchair Mistake #2: Not Activating Your Core

Most beginners start off learning their airchair in this position:

Okay, what’s wrong with this position?

Simply this — I am too high up here on my chest and I am not going to be using my core.

In fact, you’ll see a lot of people trying airchairs and they end up like this.

Why is this wrong?

Notice that at this angle, how the core at X (see image) is lower than the chest at O.

Now, you can clearly see why they are unable to hold their airchair.

What they need to do is that they need to be “bent down”.

What do I mean by “bent down”?

Look at this image here:

Notice how my core at X is on the same level as my chest at O. This is EXACTLY what you should be aiming for to hit an airchair.

So, how do you correct this?

Follow this exercise:

Step 1: Start from a chair freeze and put down both legs.

Step 2: Lift up using your core. You can imagine that you’re kinda like doing sit-ups or crunches but with a stick behind your back.

From here, it’s much much easier to airchair!

Airchair Mistake #3: Misusing The Muscles In Your Stabbing Arm

So the last airchair mistake commonly made by beginners is that they like to jump into their airchairs. This is not wrong but many mistakes are made here. They either snap their arm, straightening it too fast or they don’t hold their arm and they fall.

This is what I am referring to:

There are many problems that can be attributed to why this happens, but today I want to help you fix that part where you’re involuntarily snapping and not using your muscles correctly.

To fix this, do this exercise:

Step 1: Start off in the same position as Mistake #2. This time, instead of using your core, relax. We are going to practice pushing with your arm.

Step 2: Push and hold. Get used to this position. If you can, push more. It’s kinda like doing a pushup.

Step 3: Do 7-10 reps for 3 sets. Once you’ve pushed enough, hold it there. You have to get used to this position. It’s very crucial

TIP: Do not use your core! This is for your arm practice.

This exercise is great because you can do it anywhere. For example, I used to practice this exercise (a la conditioning my stabbing arm) when I watch TV (especially when the advertisements come on) or when I play a game and I died (like DotA).

Just focusing on these 3 exercises should eliminate most of the problems you face when learning airchair.

The key is to really DO the exercises, focus on conditioning and correcting the right problems and you should get your airchair in no time.

What do you think?

Did I miss out on any mistakes? What is your current airchair progression?